Eitan Noyze: Mastering the Art of Sampling with MPC – From Dark Shadows to Soulful Beats

When "Eitan Noyze" first started producing, his introduction wasn’t through fancy DAWs or expensive gear—it was through an "Akai MPC", a gift from a close friend. “At first, I had no idea what I was doing,” Eitan laughs. “But once I got my hands on the MPC, it felt like a direct connection to the music. It was just me and the machine.”

The MPC became Eitan’s cornerstone—a tool to sample, chop, and flip vinyl into new creations. “Sampling is all about taking something old and making it fresh,” he says. “It’s a way of telling stories.”

Eitan’s method of producing began by digging through records at random and seeing what clicked. It was all about discovering hidden gems. "You never know what you’ll find," he explains. "Sometimes the best parts are buried deep, and you have to find them."

The First Samples: Dark Shadows and Stoned Soul Picnic

One afternoon, in his Brooklyn studio, Eitan was building a beat from two unlikely sources: *Dark Shadows* and *The 5th Dimension*. First, he dropped the needle on a vinyl from the *Dark Shadows* TV series—an eerie, moody soundtrack filled with strange, atmospheric sounds. "This stuff is weird, but it has such a distinct vibe," he says, as haunting organ and string loops filled the room. “It’s unpredictable, but that’s what makes it interesting.”

From that record, Eitan pulled a ghostly organ loop—raw and atmospheric—which would become the spine of the track. But the soul of the beat was about to come from something completely different.

The next record was *The 5th Dimension’s* *"Stoned Soul Picnic,"* a classic 1968 soul album. Here, Eitan grabbed a tight, funky drum break from the title track—smooth, live-sounding drums with a groove that immediately felt right. “These drums have that classic soul bounce,” he says. “They’re loose and full of character, which is perfect for what I wanted to do.”

The contrast between these two records—*Dark Shadows’* eerie vibes and *The 5th Dimension’s* soulful rhythms—set the stage for Eitan’s creative process.

Crafting the Beat: Soul Meets Mystery

With the samples locked in, Eitan began building the track. First, he loaded the drums from *Stoned Soul Picnic* into the MPC, chopping them up into individual hits. The result? A funky, punchy groove with just the right amount of soul. "Drums are everything," Eitan says. "They lay the foundation for the whole track. If the drums aren’t right, nothing else will work."

Next, he brought in the *Dark Shadows* organ loop, which Eitan twisted and pitched until it had the eerie, atmospheric vibe he was looking for. “It needed to breathe,” he explains. “You can’t just loop it straight from the record. I wanted it to feel alive, like it was floating in space.”

From there, Eitan began layering additional sounds: subtle hi-hats, offbeat vocal snippets, and gentle synth pads to add texture without clutter. “I don’t like to fill every space,” he says. “Sometimes less is more. I want the track to breathe, to leave room for everything to unfold naturally.”

Experimentation and Vibe

As the track took shape, Eitan experimented with effects—adding reverb to the organ, delay to the drums, and panning to the vocals. It was all about creating space. “I like to create depth,” he says. “Effects can make a track feel bigger without overloading it. It’s all about balance.”

But the real magic lay in the way the samples blended together. The *Dark Shadows* organ loop, initially eerie and dissonant, now floated effortlessly above the groovy drum break from *Stoned Soul Picnic*. “There’s a chemistry there,” Eitan says. “It’s about finding the right combination of sounds and seeing how they can interact in a new way.”

Eitan's sampling approach is deeply rooted in experimentation. “There’s no blueprint,” he says. “I might start with a random sample, and then everything just evolves. That’s the beauty of it. Sometimes the best beats come from those unexpected moments.”

For Eitan, the MPC is more than just a tool; it’s an extension of his creative process. “Sampling is all about how you listen,” he explains. “You’re taking something that’s already existed, but when you manipulate it, it becomes yours. The MPC gave me that power.”

And while his style reflects the influence of hip-hop pioneers like J Dilla and Pete Rock, Eitan’s approach is uniquely his. His beats combine the old and new, blending organic sounds with experimental techniques that push the boundaries of traditional sampling. “The process isn’t about rules,” he says. “It’s about finding what works for the vibe you want to create.”

The Final Touches: Bringing It All Together

As the track neared completion, the eerie organ and funky drums locked in perfectly. Eitan’s use of space and minimalism allowed the elements to breathe without feeling overcrowded. It was a sound that felt fresh but had roots in the past—a blend of soul, funk, and atmospheric mood.

For Eitan, the process of making beats is always evolving. “Every track is a new chance to try something different,” he says. “But in the end, it’s about making music that feels real. It’s about the vibe.”

In the world of beat-making, where technology constantly changes and trends come and go, Eitan Noyze’s approach remains grounded in one thing: the art of sampling. By taking something old and giving it new life, he’s continuing the legacy of hip-hop’s foundational roots while pushing the boundaries of what’s possible.

Eitan was featured in Honeysuckle's most recent print edition with Mike Tyson. Buy here!

Find our more about Eitan here.